”If you get it wrong, then correct it! This case is not an emergency, so what is there to be nervous about? Besides, my master is watching. If you make a mistake, he will remind you. Clinical participation engraves a deeper memory than you watching by the side!” Gu Ye put on her white coat again and stood in front of the operating table.
Doctor Si took a deep breath, and under the sympathetic and envious eyes of other military doctors, he stood at Sage Apothecary’s station just now with a bunch of surgical equipment within reach.
The patient was a woman in her forties. Her face was flushed and was so hot that she had lost consciousness. Her wound was on the lower right side of her left palm. It was red and swollen, and purulent fluid was seeping out. Gu Ye glanced at it and came to a conclusion, so she gave her a bottle of anti-inflammation and anti-infection antibiotics.
”Anesthetics are divided into general anesthesia and local anesthesia. Take the case earlier and this one for example. Inject local anesthetic near the wound, and that’s it!” Gu Ye prepared a certain dose of anesthetic and injected it near the wound.
Doctor Si frowned and thought for a while, then asked, “Then… is general anesthesia used for our Major General?”
”That’s right.” Gu Ye nodded. She pointed to the large area of necrotic tissue in the wound and continued, “Surgical debridement must be done for a severely festered wound like this. No. 3 scalpel…”
”Uh?? Oh!” After a brief confusion, Doctor Si finally found out the model of the scalpel Gu Ye needed.
Gu Ye took the scalpel, excised the necrotic tissue from the wound, and cleaned up the exudate from it. The wound was deep, and after the cleaning was completed, she used continuous suture to stitch up the cut.
”The advantage of the continuous suture technique is that it saves sutures and time, and it is airtight. The disadvantage is that if another crack occurs, the wound is in danger of bursting.” While preparing the medicine, Gu Ye handed over the task of bandaging to Doctor Si.
Having worked as a military doctor for many years, Doctor Si was still competent enough for such a simple task as bandaging.
”Is this bottle anti-inflammatory and anti-infection?” Doctor Si looked at the transparent tube, where drops of medicinal liquid flowed into the patient’s blood vessels. Although he saw it once at the border, the sight of it still amazed him. These discoveries really opened his eyes. It turned out that people’s blood could contain other liquids and that you could also transfuse another person’s blood into someone else’s. It was mind blowing!
”Ahem! This liquid medicine is very precious. When the patient’s fever subsides and she wakes up, she can take it orally instead.”
Gu Ye frowned. There were limited processed antibiotics in her space, so she must find a chance to go in and make a batch.
After coming out of the operating room, she handed over the job of comforting the patient’s family to the military doctors. Also, she conspired with her master to dig a batch of medicinal materials from Old General Chu. They couldn’t possibly pass on the techniques as well as collect their own medicinal materials, right?
As soon as Sage Apothecary heard that his disciple was going to make anesthetics and antibiotics, his interest was instantly revived and he readily agreed to help. Gu Ye didn’t intend to hide the production methods of these medicines, but the dazzling array of experimental equipment in her space was really difficult to take out, so she politely declined her master’s “kindness”.
The disappointment on Sage Apothecary’s face was too obvious. However, thinking that these medicines were a secret, he didn’t insist anymore. Gu Ye was reminded of how her master not only tried his best to teach her all concocting methods, but also helped her reap benefits from her Uncle-Master and felt a little sorry.
She made up her mind that once the quality of the syringes and saline bottles ordered from Yinzhen Pavilion passed the test, she would give them the blueprints of measuring cups, flasks, test tubes and other equipment. In this way, when she would make potions, she’d have no need to avoid her master.
Right after Gu Ye had lunch with her master, grandfather and elder brother, Doctor Si rushed inside excitedly and shouted ecstatically, “Master Zheng, Miss Gu! That patient’s fever has subsided and she has woken up. She even said she wanted to come and kowtow to you, to express her gratitude to you for saving her life!”
In this era, there was no abuse of antibiotics, and no antibodies were thus produced in the body. Naturally, the effect was quick. Gu Ye expected this, and so she was calm.
On the contrary, Doctor Si’s eyes were red with excitement: “Incredible! With these anti-inflammatory and anti-infection medicine, many of our soldiers will not die of wounds festering in vain! Master Zheng, you don’t know how heartbreaking it is for us military doctors to see those soldiers who had to have their arms or legs amputated because of festering wounds. A lot even died because of it!”
Sniffling, Doctor Si rubbed his eyes vigorously, stretched his lips, and showed an ugly but sincere grin. “Everything’s going to get better now! With the new medicine you made, Master Zheng, our soldiers will have a layer of protection in their lives, and they don’t have to worry about succumbing to those minor injuries and diseases.”
This military doctor looks a bit foolish on ordinary days, but he has never lost his essence as a doctor — doing his best to cure diseases and save lives without shrinking from danger… I believe that he will soon grow up to be a qualified surgeon!
The woman whose hand was injured had her stitches removed after seven days and left. The other patient with the thigh injury, in the light of his healing speed, was delayed for three days. His stitches were also removed. Gu Ye instructed him not to engage in heavy work for a month.
During the past ten days, she poured out the knowledge on general surgery and passed them onto the military doctors. The military doctors were worthy of being carefully selected as they possessed keen learning abilities. On the fifth day, they started to deal with some common wounds.
With the relatives and friends of the two wounded doing the publicity, they treated the wounded for free, so there was no shortage of patients they could practice on. In the following days, it was the five military doctors who independently completed the sutures for the wounded.
At the start, their technique was a bit rusty, their stitches were crooked, and their stitches were of different sizes. However, in general, they committed no mishaps. By the tenth day, although their techniques were not as good as Gu Ye’s, they were already considered highly proficient.